The problem
A wedding DJ needs the first dance, entrance music, must-plays, do-not-plays and the running order, and couples send them in texts, voice notes and screenshots. Turning that into a usable list and checking it by phone takes about 90 minutes a wedding. With 6 weddings a month that's 9 hours, and a missed first-dance edit on the night is the mistake couples remember.
What the AI does
Gigbuilder's client portal comes with every account and works as a mobile app. Its site says couples build must-play and do-not-play lists from your library, Spotify or Tidal, with requests matched to your library, and lists event timelines too. Send the portal link with the booking confirmation and ask for the plan 4 weeks before the wedding, and you get one list in one place plus the timings for the entrance, speeches and first dance.
A worked example
A wedding DJ in Devon plays about 6 weddings a month in summer. They switch from collecting requests by text and email to Gigbuilder's planning portal, then do one short call per couple to check the plan.
Before
About 90 minutes per wedding gathering, retyping and checking song lists: 6 × 90 = 540 minutes, 9 hours a month
After
About 30 minutes per wedding to review the portal plan and make one call: 6 × 30 = 180 minutes, 3 hours a month
What it's worth
About $200£150€179A$288C$282 a month saved, against about $25£19€23A$36C$36 for Gigbuilder Basic, or nothing extra if you already use it for bookings. That's 6 hours (540 minus 180 minutes) at an assumed $33£25€30A$48C$47 an hour. Fewer mistakes with first dances and entrances aren't counted.
How to set it up
- Load your music library into Gigbuilder if you want requests matched to tracks you own, and decide how you'll handle requests you don't have.
- Set up the planning form with sections for the entrance, first dance, must-plays, do-not-plays and timings.
- Send the portal link with every booking confirmation and give a deadline, such as 4 weeks before the date.
- Two weeks before, review the plan and book one short call to check edits, how to pronounce names and timings with the venue.
- Print the plan for the night as a backup in case the venue has no signal.
What goes wrong
- A streaming version of a track may be a different edit from the one you play. Confirm the version for the first dance.
- Some couples won't use a portal. Offer to fill it in with them on the call.
- Requests don't license anything. The tracks you play must be legally obtained and licensed for DJ use, whatever the couple asks for.
- A portal full of 200 must-plays isn't a plan. Set a limit and explain why in your confirmation.